Early Catholicism in Brisbane

Although there was European settlement at Toowong in the 1860s, the area did not develop until the opening of the Brisbane to Ipswich railway line in 1875 made it readily accessible. A number of villa houses were constructed on large estates on the Toowong ridge, while more modest residences occupied the lower levels. The first St Thomas Church of England opened in 1875 and by 1878 Toowong had enough families to warrant a provisional school.^[1]

In 1879, the first Catholic Mass was celebrated at Toowong in a private home, as there was no church in the area. Catholics living in the area attended St Stephens Cathedral in the Brisbane central business district. In 1888 Archbishop Robert Dunne purchased land in Holland Street below the site of the present church and on 9 April 1893 the new timber church, called St Michael and the Holy Souls, was blessed and opened there.^[1]

In 1902, the Sisters of Mercy purchased a large private home, Goldicott, at the top of the hill and took up residence there, naming it Mount St Mary's Convent. They began teaching at the school next to the church in 1903. A tramline from the city opened in 1904 and was soon extended, contributing to the growth of the Toowong area.^[1]

In 1912, James Duhig became Dunne's Co-Adjudicator, taking on much of his administrative duties. The first Catholic Brisbane parishes were erected at Coorparoo, Kangaroo Point, South Brisbane, Red Hill and Rosalie, the parish of Toowong being later formed from part of Rosalie. Although Dunne had only encouraged the Sisters of Mercy and the Christian Brothers to establish branches of their orders themselves in Queensland, Duhig was keen to encourage other religious orders in order to expand education. In August 1915 he wrote to Father John Ryan of the Society of Jesus in Sydney in this regard. In 1916 Toowong became the responsibility of the Jesuits who purchased and enlarged a house near the church for use as a presbytery. It was opened on St Ignatius Loyola Day, 30 July 1916.^[1]

By the early 1920s, both church and school were becoming inadequate for the growing congregation and the distance between convent and school had always been inconvenient for the teaching nuns, so the Sisters of Mercy provided a solution by offering part of their land for a new building. A public meeting was held in November 1928 at which it was suggested that costs could be kept down by building a hall underneath the church and by using it as a school. John Francis (Jack) Hennessy drew up the plans at the end of 1929. His father, also John Hennessy, founder of the Sydney firm of Hennessy and Hennessy, was an ecclesiastical architect who had worked on St Patrick's, Manly and St Joseph's College, Hunters Hill. Duhig met the younger Hennessey when he was Bishop of Rockhampton and they had become friends. After Duhig became Archbishop of Brisbane, Jack Hennessey received a number of commissions from him. These included the churches of St Agatha, Clayfield (1925), Corpus Christi, Nundah (1926), and St Augustine, Coolangatta (1926). He also designed the ambitious Cathedral of the Holy Name whose construction commenced but was never completed.^[1]

Construction commenced

The foundation stone for the church was laid on 16 June 1929.^[2] Duhig announced at the ceremony that "the day of wooden churches are past" and that he hoped that no more would be built in the city. His vision for the development of the Catholic Church in Queensland included plans for the building of a number of substantial churches to manifest the strength and presence of the Church. Seeking landmark sites, he chose many on hilltops.^[1]

The new church was built by Concrete Constructions Ltd and was supervised by Leo Drinan, Hennessy's partner in the Brisbane office. All materials used were of the best quality and all five altars were designed by H Credington of the Catholic Art Gallery in Melbourne and made in his studios at Carrara in Italy. Andrew Petrie and Sons erected them. Many handsome gifts were bestowed on the church, including altars, statuary and a number of stained glass windows by John Hardman of London and William Bustard, a noted local glass artist who created the "Magnificat" and "Christ the King" windows.^[1]

The Architects and Builders Journal of Queensland, in its May edition, predicted that "This building should rank as one of the handsomest churches of its size in Queensland". The Catholic Leader of 22 May 1930 thought that "The Italian Romanesque style of architecture, with the scope for elaborate interior embellishment and bold use of colour, is eminently suitable to the climate of Queensland" and the church indeed has a high quality of interior detailing. This decorative work includes ornate main and side altars, statuary, stained glass and in particular, extensive and striking scagliola work to the sanctuary and pulpit.^[1]

Scagliola (from scaglia or scales, after the natural form of the mineral used) is an artificial stone created from gypsum plaster, glues and dyes that can be made to imitate various types of stone, though usually rare types and colours of marble. The best work is visually indistinguishable from genuine marble, though it is far lighter, so that large and complex decorative features, such as the St Ignatius pulpit, can be constructed that would be difficult and costly to create in stone. The technique was developed in Germany and Italy at the end of the 15th century and was used mainly for decorating churches, such as San Miniato al Monte in Florence, Italy. Fine early examples of it also survive in secular buildings such as the Pantheon and Syon House in England. It became popular in America in the 19th century, the work being carried out by itinerant Italian craftsmen, though much was not of good quality.^[1]

The art was revived in Australia by the Sydney firm of Melocco Brothers. In 1908 Italian Pietro Melocco arrived in Sydney and began a commission on St Mary's Cathedral, the magnificent decorated floors of which became his life's work. His two brothers joined him and their firm was responsible for most of Sydney's best mosaic and terrazzo work, though much of this has not survived. For the Government Savings Bank in Martin Place, Tony Melocco decided to use scagliola, a technique by then fallen into disuse. Finding no one in either Italy or America able to teach him, Galli Melocco moved to Brisbane in 1929 to set up a branch of the company, though he returned to Sydney a year later as the Depression reduced the demand for such decorative work. It is not known if any major scagliola project other than that at St Ignatius Church was carried out in Queensland.^[1]

The church was blessed and opened by Archbishop Duhig on the 18 May 1930 and dedicated to St Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Society of Jesus. Its cost of £16,010 included excavations, seating, lighting, decoration and fittings.^[3] The old church was relocated to Graceville, where it remains.^[1]

Subsequent works

Between 1933 and 1936 a number of works were carried out by Depression relief labour. Kensington Terrace was excavated and the land on the southern side of the church was excavated to provide better access. The spoil was used to reclaim land along the northern side of the church that is now used as a car park.^[1]

The hall under the church did not prove suitable for long-term use as a school as it was too small and could not be divided into separate classrooms. On 3 November 1946 the foundation stone of a new school was laid to the west of the church. It was opened on 18 July 1948 and has been extended in several stages in the late 20th century.^[1]

Father Leo Murphy, assistant priest at St Ignatius since 1942, died in 1957 and a fund was set up to purchase a pipe organ as a memorial to him and in accordance with the instructions of Pope Pius XII who had ruled that a pipe organ was the approved instrument for use during the liturgy and to accompany singing. The organ was constructed by Whitehouse at a cost of £2050 and was installed on 2 February and blessed on 8 March 1959.^[1]

The Sanctuary was paved with marble in February 1963 and new lighting was installed in the church and hall. Following changes recommended by the Second Vatican Council, the first mass at St Ignatius facing the people was held in 1966. A silky oak communion table was constructed for this purpose and donated by parishioner Frank Shuttlewood and his wife. The baptismal font of carved Carrara marble has been moved from the Baptistery to the front of the church and the confessional booths on either side of the rear of the church appear now to be used for storage.^[1]